Support for hoists or the like



July 19, 1966 s. R. POWELL SUPPORT FOR HOISTS OR THE LIKE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Aug. 12, 1964 INVENTOR. EDGAR RPUWELL.

BY @eww July 19, 1966 E. R. POWELL SUPPORT FOR HOISTS OR THE LIKE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 12. 1964 INVENTOR. E17 BAH H.1 0 WELL BY @u 477'0FA/5/5.

United States Patent 3,261,477 SUPPORT FOR HOISTS OR THE LIKE Edgar R. Powell, 4833 Elmhurst, Royal Oak, Mich. Filed Aug. 12, 1964, Ser. No. 389,143 Claims. (Cl. 212-134) This invention relates to a hoist support and more particularly to means for movably suspending a hoist or the like from an overhead rail.

The support according to the invention is particularly adapted for use with hoists or other devices which are subjected to a substantial or sudden application of torque. The new support is in the form of a trolley which enables the hoist to give or yield a certain amount in the direction of the torque at the time it is suddenly applied, and then to return to a normally loaded position as the torque decreases. This action enables all wheels of the trolley to remain on the supporting member and also reduces the shock on the cable. As the hoist rebounds to its normal position, it can even aid in the initial lifting of the load. With the new trolley, wear on the hoist components can be reduced and a thinner cable can even be used. Also, heavier loads can be lifted or a given load can be lifted or lowered more rapidly.

The new support also includes a unique safety device which independently connects the hoist and the overhead rail to prevent separation of the hoist and the rail should the main support fail. The safety device otherwise does not hamper the operation of the hoist or the cooperation between the hoist and the support.

It is, therefore, an object of the invention to provide a support for a hoist or the like having the above advantages.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment thereof, reference being made to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a somewhat schematic view in perspective of a hoist supporting a load and suspended from a rail by a support according to the invention;

FIG. 2 is a greatly enlarged view in perspective of the support and a portion of the hoist shown in FIG. 1, and with the overhead rail shown partly in dotted lines;

' FIG. 3 is an enlarged view in elevation, with parts broken away and with parts in cross section, of a component of the support of FIG. 2;

FIGS. 4 and 5 are somewhat schematic views in elevation of the hoist and support shown in positions with a steady load and with the sudden application of a load, respectively; and

FIG. 6 is a detailed view in perspective of a safety device embodied with the support according to the invention.

Referring to the drawings, and more particularly to FIG. 1, a load It) is shown supported by a hoist 12 which is suspended by a support or trolley 14 from an overhead rail 16. The hoist 12 can be of a number of suitable types and, as shown, includes a housing 18 in which is rotatably supported a cable drum 20 which is rotated by a suitable drive such as a motor 22 mounted on one end of the housing 18 and remotely operated by a control 24. A cable 26 on the drum 22 is wound thereon when the drum is rotated in a counterclockwise direction and is un- 3,261,477 Patented July 19, 1966 wound when the drum is rotated in a clockwise direction. While the load 10 is raised and lowered through the drum 20, the motor 22, and the control 24, the drum 20 also may be powered with just sufficient force to overcome most of the weight of the load, with the load then manipulated by hand. A hoist of this type is shown in my copending application Serial No. 315,873, filed October 14, 1963 entitled Balancing Hoist and in my Patent 2,710,- 107 entitled Floating Hoist. With any type of hoist, however, the cable and the hoist may be subjected to sudden shocks as the load is raised or lowered. This is particularly true of the specific hoist 12 shown when the load is raised and is particularly true of the balancing type hoist when the load is suddenly moved downwardly by an operator or when the air pressure is first applied to the hoist.

The trolley or support 14, which is shown more particularly in FIG. 2, provides a particular movement for the hoist 12 which prevents rear wheels of the trolley from being lifted from the supporting rail, thereby placing all of the load on the front wheels and their associated linkage when a heavy load is lifted. With the rear wheels raised slightly from the rail, the hoist tends to rock as it is moved along the rail. The trolley further reduces the shock of sudden loads on the cable 26 and enables a lighter cable to be employed than otherwise, as well as smoothing the overall lifting and lowering operation associated with the hoist. The trolley 14 includes a pair of front wheels 28 and a pair of rear wheels 30 with the front wheels 28 located substantially directly above the depending portion of the cable 26. All of the wheels are identical and each includes a hub 32, the periphery of which rests on the beam or rail 16 and a flange 34 which guides the wheel along the beam. The beam 16 includes a web 36 with the wheels 28 and the wheels 30 located on opposite sides thereof, and a lower flange 38 upon which the wheels are supported and guided by the hubs 32 and the flanges 34. The wheels 28 are rotatably mounted on stationary axles 40 by bearings 42, and the wheels 30 are similarly mounted on stationary axles 44 by bearings 46. The axles 41 in turn, are mounted in upper ends of forward supporting links 48 by means of spring or roll pins 50, with the wheels 28 being spaced from the supporting links 48 by suitable washers 52. Similarly, the axles 44 for the rear wheels 30 are aflixed to upper ends of rear supporting links 54 by spring or roll pins 56 and spaced from the links by washers 58.

The wheels 28 and 30 on each side of the web 36 are held in spaced relation by spacer bars 60 which are connected to the upper ends of the links 48 and 54 by suitable bolts 62 and 64 and nuts 66 and 68, respectively. The spacer bars 60 are not afilxed to the links 48 and 54 sufliciently tightly to prevent relative movement between them, however. If desired, the bolts 62 and 64 can be extensions of the axles 40 and 44.

The lower end of the supporting links 48 contain passages through which a connecting shaft '70 extends, with the links 48 connected to the shaft 70' by spring or roll pins 72. The pins 72 cooperate with any one of a plurality of notches 74 formed in end portions of the shaft 70 so as to space apart the wheels 28 by any predetermined distance in order to enable them to properly cooperate with and fit on the beam flange 38. The notches 74 can be located in staggered relationship on opposite sides of the shaft 70 (FIG. 3) to provide a maximum number of adjustments in a given length of the shaft. The rear supporting links 54 similarly are connected by a shaft 76 which extends through openings in the lower ends of the links 54 and is afiixed thereto by pins 78. The shaft 76 similarly has notches 88 to provide the same transverse adjustment for beam flanges of different widths.

The front shaft 70 extends through a passage 82. of a bearing block 84 which is suitably affixed to the outer surface of the hoist housing 18 by a weld or the like. As shown more particularly in FIG. 3, a heavy resilient torsion bushing 86 is located between the shaft 70 and the bearing block 84 and is maintained under compression therebetween, being incapable of rotating with respect to either the shaft or the block. The bushing 86 is held in place by snap rings 88 located in grooves 90 in the shaft. The rear shaft 76 extends through a passage 92 in a rear bearing block 94 which also is afiixed to the hoist housing 18 by welding or other suitable means. A resilient torsion bushing 95 is located between the bearing block 94 and the shaft 76 and is held in place by snap rings located in shaft grooves, similar to the arrangement for the shaft 7 0.

All of the supporting links 48 and 54 can have flange stops 96 located thereon below the wheels 28 and 30 to prevent the wheels from being lifted above the flange 38 to any degree. This maintains the trolley 14 aligned in proper relation to the beam 16.

It is important that the spacing between the upper ends of the supporting links 48 and 54 on each side of the web 36, as determined by the length of the spacer bars 60, exceed the distance between the lower ends of the supporting link of the associated supporting links 48 and 54, as determined by the spacing between the bearing blocks 84 and 94. With this arrangement, the associated links 48 and 54 converge in a downward direction and enable the hoist housing 18 to rock when the cable is subjected to sudden loads, as shown by the schematic representations in FIGS. 4 and 5. With a relatively static load on the cable 26, the housing 18 will be slightly cocked in a clockwise direction, as shown in FIG. 4, with the supporting links 48 and 54 shifted slightly. The ex tent of the shift will depend on the size of the load and upon the resistance afforded by the torsion bushings 86 and 95 which are placed in torsion as the links move, since the torsion bushings cannot move with respect to either the bearing blocks 84 and 94 or the shafts 7t} and 76. If a large or sudden force is now placed on the cable 26, for example, if the load is heavy or is suddenly raised by rotation of the hoist drum in a counterclockwise direction, the sudden torque placed on the housing 18 will cause the links 48 and 54 to move further in counterclockwise directions, as shown in FIG. 5, with the housing 18 then moving in a clockwise direction. This clockwise movement of the housing 18 and the hoist components prevents the rear wheels from being raised from the rail, as has sometimes occurred heretofore. This places more strain on the front wheels and linkages and also renders diflicult movement of the hoist along the rail. The clockwise movement of the components also relieves some of the sudden tension placed on the cable 26 and thereby either enables heavier loads to be moved, enables the loads to be moved faster, or enables a smaller cable to be used. The shock on the hoist drum, drive, and other components also is reduced, thus contributing to longer life of the components. The extreme movement of the housing 18 to the position of FIG. 5 is only temporary and when the additional torque is decreased, the housing and the supporting links will revert to the position of FIG. 4. The actions shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 will similarly take place with a balancing hoist except this particular action will occur when the air is first applied to the hoist or when the load is suddenly moved 4. downwardly by the operator, rather than upwardly with the hoist of FIG. 1.

It will be evident from FIGS. 4 and 5 that the action shown, with the clockwise rotation of the housing, is possible only if the supporting links 48 and 54 converge in a downward direction. If they are parallel, the housing cannot rotate at all although it may shift slightly, and if diverging, the housing can neither rotate nor shift.

With the hoist and supporting links in the position of FIG. 4, it will also be understood that if the load 10 is lowered with the hoist of FIG. 1 or raised with a balancing hoist, the housing and linkage will temporarily move toward the unloaded position of FIGS. 1 and 2. In this manner, the sudden release of tension on the cable 26 will be slowed down. In either case, the sudden forces acting on the cable and its components are moderated.

The trolley 14 includes a unique safety device shown more particularly in FIG. 6. The device includes a safety link 1% in the form of a C-shaped bar having ends projecting above the horizontal flange 38 with ends 102 of the link being farther apart than the thickness of the web 36 but substantially closer together than the width of the flange 38. A horizontal portion 184 of the safety link has two spaced cylinders 106 welded or otherwise afiixed thereto to receive a pivot pin or pintle 108. The pin 108 extends through a central passage 110 in the hearing block 94 to connect the safety link 108 to the housing 18.

In practice, the safety link is assembled with the beam 16 by placing it over one end thereof or by burning out a notch in the horizontal flange 38. However, the safety link also can be made in two separate pieces and assembled with the housing after being fitted over the edges of the flange 38. The safety link 100 assures support of the hoist 12 even though other components of the trolley 14 should fail. This is an important feature of the trolley 14 since serious and even fatal injuries can result from a fracture of the trolley 14, as well as extensive damage to equipment, including the hoist itself.

Various modifications of the above described embodimerit of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and it is to be understood that such modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention, if they are within the spirit and tenor of the accompanying claims.

I claim:

1. In combination with a hoist including a housing, a power drum rotatably mounted in said housing, means for effecting rotation of said drum, a cable on said drum and extending downwardly tangentially therefrom, said cable being wound onto said drum when rotated in one direction and unwound from said drum when rotated in the other direction, a trolley for supporting said hoist from a flanged beam having a horizontal flange and a web, said trolley comprising two pair of wheels adapted to ride on the horizontal flange of the beam with the wheels of each pair lying on opposite sides of the web, an axle for each of said wheels, a pair of supporting links connected to the axles of each of said pairs of wheels, each pair of supporting links extending downwardly and toward the opposite pair in a converging direction, spacer bars spacing apart the upper ends of said pairs of supporting links on each side of the Web by a predetermined distance, a pivot shaft connecting lower end portions of each of said pair of supporting links, two bearing blocks affixed to said hoist housing through which extend intermediate portions of said pivot shafts between the respective supporting links, said bearing blocks being spaced apart a distance less than the distance between the pairs of wheels, and torsion bushings between said bearing blocks and said pivot shafts to yieldably support said shafts, said bushings being incapable of rotating with respect to either said shafts or said bearing blocks, a safety link comprising a generally C-shaped rod, the free ends of which extend over the horizontal flange of the beam and are closer together than the width of the flange and farther apart than the thickness of the web, a pair of cylinders affixed to said rod and spaced along a horizontal portion thereof, one of said bearing blocks having a pin passage therethrough, and a pivot pin extending through said pin passage and through said cylinders to connect said safety link to the associated bearing block.

2. In combination with a hoist including a housing, a power drum rotatably mounted in said housing, means for effecting rotation of said drum, a cable on said drum and extending downwardly tangentially therefrom, said cable being wound onto said drum when rotated in one direction and unwound from said drum when rotated in the other direction, a trolley for supporting said hoist from a flanged beam having a horizontal flange and a web, said trolley comprising two pair of wheels adapted to ride on the horizontal flange of the beam with the wheels of each pair lying on opposite sides of the web, an axle for each of said wheels, a pair of supporting links connected to the axles of each of said pairs of wheels, each pair of supporting links extending downwardly and toward the opposite pair in a converging direction, spacer bars spacing apart the upper ends of said pairs of supporting links on each side of the web by a predetermined distance, a pivot shaft connecting lower end portions of each of said pairs of supporting links, two bearing blocks afiixed to said hoist housing through which extend intermediate portions of said pivot shafts between the respective supporting links, said bearing blocks being spaced apart a distance less than the distance between the pairs of wheels, and torsion bushings between said bearing blocks and said pivot shafts to yieldably support said shafts, said bushings being incapable of rotating with respect to either said shafts or said bearing blocks.

3. In combination with a hoist including a housing, a power drum rotatably mounted in said housing, means for effecting rotation of said drum, a cable on said drum and extending downwardly tangentially therefrom, a trolley for supporting said hoist from a flanged beam having a horizontal flange and a web, said trolley comprising two pair of wheels adapted to ride on the horizontal flange of the beam with the wheels of each pair lying on opposite sides of the web, a pair of supporting links rotatably connected to each of said pairs of wheels, each pair of supporting links extending downwardly and toward the opposite pair in a converging direction, means spacing apart the upper ends of said supporting links on each side of the web by a predetermined distance, a pivot shaft connecting lower end portions of each of said pairs of supporting links, two bearing means affixed to said hoist housing for receiving portions of said pivot shafts, said bearing means being spaced apart a distance less than the distance between the Wheels, and resilient bushings between said bearing means and said piv-ot shafts to yieldably support said shafts.

4. In combination with a hoist including a housing, a power drum rotatably mounted in said housing, means for effecting rotation of said drum, a cable on said drum and extending downwardly tangentially therefrom, a trolley for supporting said hoist from a flanged beam having a horizontal flange and a web, said trolley comprising wheel means adapted to ride on the horizontal flange of the beam, a supporting link pivotally connected to each of said wheel means, said supporting links extending downwardly in a converging direction, means spacing apart the upper ends of said supporting links on each side of the web by a predetermined distance, shaft means connecting lower end portions of said supporting links, bearing means affixed to said hoist housing for receiving said pivot shaft means, and resilient bushing means between said bearing means and said pivot shaft means for yieldably supporting same.

5. In combination with a hoist including a housing, a power drum rotatably mounted in said housing, a cable on said drum and extending downwardly therefrom for attachment to a load, a trolley for supporting said hoist from a flanged beam having a horizontal flange and a web, said trolley comprising two pair of supporting links converging toward one another in a downward direction, a pivot shaft connecting lower end portions of each of said pair of supporting links, means aflixed to said hoist housing for receiving said pivot shafts, said shaft receiving means being effective to urge said supporting links toward predetermined positions, means pivotally connected to the upper ends of said supporting links on each-side of the web for spacing apart the respective upper portions of said supporting links a distance greater than the spacing of the lower portions, and means for movably supporting said supporting links on the horizontal flange.

6. In combination with a hoist including a housing, a power drum rotatably mounted in said housing, a cable on said drum and extending downwardly therefrom for attachment to a load, a trolley for supporting said hoist from a flanged beam having a horizontal flange and a web, said trolley comprising two pair of supporting links converging toward one another in a downward direction, means afiixed to said hoist housing for connecting said supporting links thereto, said connecting means being effective to urge said supporting links toward predetermined positions, means pivotally connected to the upper ends of said supporting links on each side of the web for spacing apart the respective upper portions of said supporting links a distance greater than the spacing of the lower portions, and means for movably supporting said supporting links along the horizontal flange.

7. Means for supporting a housing subjected to sudden loads from a flange of an overhead rail, said means comprising two pair of supporting links converging toward one another in a downward direction, a pivot shaft connecting lower end portions of each of said pair of supporting links, means aflixed to said housing for receiving said pivot shafts, said shaft receiving means being effective to urge said supporting links toward predetermined positions, means pivotally connected to the upper ends of said supporting links on each side of the web for spacing apart the respective upper portions of said supporting links a distance greater than the spacing of the lower portions, and means for movably supporting said supporting links on the horizontal flange.

8. A trolley for supporting from an overhead support an object which is subjected to sudden load, said trolley comprising wheel means adapted to ride on said support, two supporting link means pivotally connected to said wheel means, said supporting link means extending downwardly in -a converging direction, shaft means connecting lower portions of each of said supporting link means, bearing means for receiving each of said shaft means, said bearing means adapted to be mounted apart a predetermined distance on said object, and torsion bushing means between said bearing means and said shaft means for urging said supporting link means toward predetermined positions.

9. A trolley for supporting an object from an overhead support, said trolley comprising two wheel means adapted to ride on said support, supporting link means pivotally connected to each of said wheel means, means spacing apart the upper ends of said supporting link means by a predetermined distance, shaft means connecting lower end portions of each of said supporting link means, bearing means for receiving said shaft means, means spacing apart said bearing means a predetermined distance, and torsion bushing means between said bearing means and said shaft means to urge said supporting link means toward predetermined positions. I

10. A trolley for supporting an object from a beam, said trolley comprising wheel means adapted to ride on said beam, two supporting links pivotally connected to 7 8 each of said wheel means, said supporting links extend- References Cited by the Examiner ing downwardly in a converging direction, a pivot shaft UNITED STATES PATENTS connecting lower end portions of each pair of supporting links, means pivotally connected to the upper ends of g g 1/?30 Mead 3 said supporting links on each side of said beam for 5 ggii a 3:358: i

1 h g .v I spacing apart t e respective upper POI'EIOIIS of th sup 2,735,554 2/1956 Ober porting links a distance greater than the spacing of the lower portions, and torsion bearing means spaced apart EVON BLUNK Primary Examiner a predetermined distance for receiving said shaft means I and urging said supporting links toward predetermined l0 SAMUEL COLEMAN Examine"- positions. A. LEVINE, Assistant Examiner. 

1. IN COMBINATION WITH A HOIST INCLUDING A HOUSING, A POWER DRUM ROTATABLY MOUNTED IN SAID HOUSING, MEANS FOR EFFECTING ROTATION OF SAID DRUM, A CABLE ON SAID DRUM AND EXTENDING DOWNWARDLY TANGENTIALLY THEREFROM, SAID CABLE BEING WOUND ONTO SAID DRUM WHEN ROTATED IN ONE DIRECTION AND UNWOUND FROM SAID DRUM WHEN ROTATED IN THE OTHER DIRECTION, A TROLLEY FOR SUPPORTING SAID HOIST FROM A FLANGED BEAM HAVING A HORIZONTAL FLANGE AND A WEB, SAID TROLLEY COMPRISING TWO PAIR OF WHEELS ADAPTED TO RIDE ON THE HORIZONTAL FLANGE OF THE BEAM WITH THE WHEELS OF EACH PAIR LYING ON OPPOSITE SIDES OF THE WEB, AN AXLE FOR EACH OF SAID WHEELS, A PAIR OF SUPPORTING LINKS CONNECTED TO THE AXLES OF EACH OF SAID PAIRS OF WHEELS, EACH PAIR OF SUPPORTING LINKS EXTENDING DOWNWARDLY AND TOWARD THE OPPOSITE PAIR IN A CONVERGING DIRECTION, SPACER BARS SPACING APART THE UPPER ENDS OF SAID PAIRS OF SUPPORTING LINKS ON EACH SIDE OF THE WEB BY A PREDETERMINED DISTANCE, A PIVOT SHAFT CONNECTING LOWER END PORTIONS OF EACH OF SAID PAIR OF SUPPORTING LINKS, TWO BEARING BLOCKS AFFIXED TO SAID HOIST HOUSING THROUGH WHICH EXTEND INTERMEDIATE PORTIONS OF SAID PIVOT SHAFTS BETWEEN THE RESPECTIVE SUPPORTING LINKS, SAID BEARING BLOCKS BEING SPACED APART A DISTANCE LESS THAN THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE PAIRS OF WHEELS, AND TORSION BUSHINGS BETWEEN SAID BEARING BLOCKS AND SAID PIVOT SHAFTS TO YIELDING SUPPORT SAID SHAFTS, SAID BUSHINGS BEING INCAPABLE OF ROTATING WITH RESPECT TO EITHER SAID SHAFTS OF SAID BEARING BLOCKS, A SAFETY LINK COMPRISING A GENERALLY C-SHAPED ROD, THE FREE ENDS OF WHICH EXTEND OVER THE HORIZONTAL FLANGE OF THE BAEM AND ARE CLOSER TOGETHER THAN THE WIDTH OF THE FLANGE ASND FARTHER APART THAN THE THICKNESS OF THE WEB, A PAIR OF CYLINDERS AFFIXED TO SAID ROD AND SPACED ALONG A HORIZONTAL PORTION THEREOF, ONE OF SAID BEARING BLOCKS HAVING A PIN PASSAGE THERETHROUGH, AND A PIVOT PIN EXTENDING THROUGH SAID PIN PASSAGE AND THROUGH SAID CYLINDERS TO CONNECT SAID SAFETY LINK TO THE ASSOCIATED BEARING BLOCK. 